PIP and terminal illness

Hi

Has anyone had difficulties with a working age DLA claimant (DLA awarded under ‘normal’ rules) needing to have supercession due to terminal illness?  Obviously the rules provide that they must move onto PIP but the PIP claim does not commence until 28 days after next DLA payment so causes long delays in new award (plus inherent delay in PIP decision making anyway), which in turn prevents carer claiming CA etc etc.

has anyone tried to stop DLA claim and make new PIP claim under special rules in this instance?

I assume you are in an area where a supersession request for DLA means a PIP claim has to be made?  If not just do a supersession request.

In areas where you do have to do a PIP claim do just that.  When you are making the claim tell them the person is getting DLA but in my experience they already know that.  DLA continues while the PIP claim is decided.  Special rules claims for PIP do not usually take that long to decide - about 2 weeks after they have the claim and the DS1500.

DLA continues in payment for 4 weeks after the decision if my memory serves me right.  This means that the higher rate under PIP is not put into payment for about 6-7 weeks after making the claim.  If they currently get middle or higher DLA someone can claim Carers Allowance now under DLA rules and it just continues after the PIP award.

If there is no current middle or higher DLA you can’t get CA until the PIP award is made but you can claim Income Support on the basis of being a carer for up to 26 weeks while waiting for a PIP decision (which will be less than 26 weeks if the claim is made under the special rules).

People are losing out about 6-7 weeks of the high rate care/daily living component and that’s if things go smoothly.  If the DS1500 goes missing or there is some other issue to delay the PIP claim it will be more.

Hi Julie

yes we are in a PIP area.  Our concern is the fact that people are losing out on 6-7 weeks of enhanced PIP and their carers are losing out on the same amount of CA (if they are not already on Middle/high Care).  This could have a significant impact on people.

Under ‘old rules’ the increase following DS1500 submission was immediate.  This just seems like it couldn’t have been a policy decision when the regs were written.

Just wanted to check no-one had found a way around this.

Thanks

To be honest, my concern is actually greater for those folk who aren’t special rules cases.

The scenario where somebody currently has say a mobility award under DLA but has care needs that arise from a new or worsening condition is such that they have to wait until they have had the needs for 3 months, apply for PIP, wait at least 26 weeks for a decision and then only get paid the new rate of benefit 4 weeks after that can mean folk losing an awful lot of money.  10 months from the onset of new needs to getting extra payment and no backdating to when you put the claim in?

These folk may well have very high level needs and actually may well be terminally ill but their specialist is iffy about a DS1500.  Our local transplant unit won’t do a DS1500 for people on the waiting list for a transplant, regardless of the fact that if a transplant is not found within a few months they very likely will die soon and that there is a fair likelihood that a transplant might not be found in time.

Do check for Income Support entitlement - you can claim on the basis of being a carer while the PIP decision is made for the person who is ill, though I will say you sometimes have to be very firm with the claim line folk that they have to take the claim although CA isn’t in payment.

Has anyone considered ending a DLA claim and submitting a PIP special rules claim the following day? This was the PIP will be paid from the date of claim rather than the date of decision plus 4 weeks.

Its not something that we have tried but curious as to whether it will work.

I have never tried to end a DLA claim and claim PIP.

Julie - Do you get in touch with the GP for a DS1500 in these cases? I have successfully persuaded the GP to issue one on the basis that a transplant is highly unlikely when the specialist refuses.